The present invention relates to the assembly of an electrical receptacle housing. More particularly, the present invention relates to the assembly of a two-piece ground fault receptacle housing having multiple barbed posts on a first portion of the housing that couple to respective resilient hoops on a second portion of the housing.
Many conventional electrical receptacle housings employ a two-piece housing that is formed by separate mateable front and back covers. The covers generally mate together using any know means, such as screws, rivets, or snap-fit. A mounting bridge with ears at opposite ends generally extends between the front and back covers and allows the housing to be attached to a suitable structure, such as a building wall or an electrical box. In some electrical receptacle designs, the mounting bridge has a generally U-shape so as to wrap around portions of the mated front and back covers of the housing and couples to the front and back covers. In other electrical receptacle designs, the mounting bridge is a relatively flat shape and is disposed between the mated front and back covers of the housing. The bridge can be coupled to the housing using any mechanical fasteners, such as screws or rivets.
In many conventional receptacle housings, the two-piece housing is coupled together using fasteners or screws, as described above. This fastener type housing forms a rigidly secured, hard to separate housing, but is cumbersome and difficult to assemble. In many situations, it is necessary to assemble many housings, each having multiple fasteners, creating a time consuming, tedious job.
Additionally, other conventional receptacle housings have a snap-fit design, wherein the front cover snaps to the back cover, holding the bridge in-between. Several designs of snap-fit of housings for electrical receptacles are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,872,087 to Brant, U.S. Pat. No. 5,510,760 to Marcou et al and U.S. Pat. No. 6,015,303 to Bonilla et al., which are herein incorporated by reference. A design of a snap-fit housing for an accessory strip to an outlet cover plate is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,613,874 to Orlando et al., which is herein incorporated by reference. While these prior art snap-fit designs allow a quick assembly of the housing without the use of screws or rivets, they do not provide a rigidly coupled housing. In many instances the two housing portions can be twisted or pulled apart relatively easily, thus exposing the electrical receptacle to the outside environment and the installer/user, and possibly causing electrical shock to the installer/user or damage to the electrical receptacle.
Consequently, a need still remains for a snap-fit housing for an electrical receptacle that is quick and easy to assemble, while simultaneously providing a housing that is difficult or unlikely to be pulled or twisted apart.
Accordingly, an object of this invention is to provide an improved electrical receptacle housing.
Another object of this invention is to provide an electrical receptacle housing, which can be easily and rapidly assembled.
Still another object of this invention is to provide an electrical receptacle housing having a two-part housing, which is difficult to disassemble.
Yet Another object of the present invention is to provide an electrical receptacle housing having a two-piece housing, which are coupled together using a snap-fit connection, rather than the more conventional fastening means.
The foregoing objects are basically attained by providing a electrical wiring device housing, comprising a first section having a first wall, a first side wall extending from the first wall, and a connecting unit extending from the first side wall. The connecting unit has a connecting wall that has a normally substantially planar configuration and is spaced from the first side wall and an end wall that is adjacent the connecting wall. The housing also comprises a second section that has a second wall, a second side wall extending from the second wall, and a post extending from the second wall. The post has a barb at the distal end thereof, the barb is adapted to pass between the connecting wall and the first sidewall and engage the end wall of the connecting unit. The first side wall remains substantially stationary while at least a portion of the connecting wall flexes away from the first side wall when the barb passes therebetween, and the connecting wall returns to the normally substantially planar configuration when the barb engages the end wall.
By forming a electrical wiring device housing in this manner, the housing is quick and easy to assembly and is extremely difficult to disassemble.
Other objects, advantages and salient features of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, which, taken in conjunction with the annexed drawings, discloses preferred embodiments of the invention.
As used in this application, up, down, upper and lower refer to relative directions depending on the orientation of the two pieces of the housing relative to each other, and do not limit the housing to any specific orientation.